PHMSA issues CAO to Chevron Pipe Line for products leak in Utah

The US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration issued a corrective action order on Mar. 22 outlining steps Chevron Pipe Line Co. must take in response to a leak 4 days earlier in its products pipeline near Willard, Utah.

An estimated 600 bbl of diesel fuel leaked when the Chevron Corp. subsidiary’s 760-mile No. 1 oil line from its refinery just north of Salt Lake City to Spokane, Wash., ruptured in marshland near Willard Bay on Mar. 18, the US Department of Transportation agency said.

CPL immediately shut the line in, mobilized vacuum trucks, and deployed booms, the CAO noted. The failure’s cause has not been determined, but a preliminary investigation points to a longitudinal seam failure, the order said.

It said the company will not be allowed to restart the line until it has submitted a written plan to the regional director at PHMSA’s office in Lakewood, Colo., which includes a hydrostatic testing plan, adequate patrolling, and a comprehensive review of the affected segment.

Once the restart plan is approved, CPL must complete the hydrostatic testing within 30 days of the scheduled restart date, the order said. The restart plan also must include documentation that all mandated actions have been completed and a management of change plan to assure that all modifications are incorporated into the pipeline’s ongoing operations and maintenance procedures, it indicated.

CPL agreed to sell CPL’s Northwest Products System, which includes this pipeline, to Tesoro Logistics LP on Dec. 11, PHMSA noted. The sale was scheduled to be completed during 2013’s first quarter, but had not been when the failure occurred, making CPL the respondent, the federal regulatory agency said.